Solo living flatlines in Australia

The proportion of Australians living alone has flatlined and real estate prices could be a significant factor, researchers say.

A new analysis of 2011 census data shows almost a quarter (24 per cent) of all Australian households comprise just a single person, and that's been true since 2001.

The decade-long trend bucks what had been a steady rise in solo living from about the end of World War II, when eight per cent of households were solo dwellers.

Researchers from the Australian Institute of Family Studies (AIFS) say a number of factors are likely to blame, including higher real estate prices.

"I think housing affordability, or the availability of the right sort of housing, is likely to be one of the factors slowing it down," says Professor David de Vaus, a senior research fellow at the AIFS.

He says the pool of people "available" to live alone is also shrinking.

"One of those pools is separated and divorced people and in Australia that's been stable for the last little while," Prof de Vaus explains.